🐼🫢 Pandas? In Boston? YUP.

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👀 What’s on tap today:

Up first…

Happy AAPI Heritage Month, B-Siders! And what better way to kick things off than by supporting local AAPI businesses while chowing down on delicious food? None.

Here are three upcoming AAPI foodie events worth a bite:

🐼 The eats and TikTok content will both be on point. Panda Fest Boston is an NYC-native food and culture festival that’s coming to City Hall Plaza TODAY for the first time ever. A $13-ish ticket gets you access to 60+ hand-picked local and national Asian food vendors serving up panda-themed bites and flavors that can be hard to find in Boston. Food aside, expect 15+ merchandise vendors and a solid lineup of Asian cultural performances, from K-pop vibes to traditional dance.

😋 What should you try? Their IG is PACKED with mouth-watering options, but founder Biubiu Xu recommends tanghulu, Chinese fruit skewers coated in melted sugar, which are both delicious and very Instagrammable; or takoyaki, battered fried balls filled with green onions, tempura, and octopus that are a staple Japanese street food. And you can never go wrong with a soup dumpling. 

🍛 Expect Asian street food staples with a side of culture. The Asian Street Food & Music Festival, put on by the Harvard Square Phil-Am in partnership with Harvard Square’s Mayfair, is back for round three. Come for the 25 Asian food trucks and vendors from across the country and a new Asian beer garden with sips from China, Korea, and Japan. Stay for the artisans, cultural fashion show, karaoke contest, and performers. Since this weekend’s weather is looking iffy, the rain date is May 18.

🤔 What should you try? The fest has a history of selling out popular items quick, said director Catherine Uy, so make sure to get your hands on some halo-halo, a Filipino shaved ice treat with evaporated milk, fruit, and other mix-ins, before it sells out (usually around 2 or 3 p.m.). Also popular: Lechon, a Filipino crispy roasted pork; and anything ube, she said.

🥟 Deals and new dishes are on deck. Now in its second year, 103 local Asian restaurants (and counting) are tapping into Boston Asian Restaurant Week to offer special dishes, discounts, or set menus throughout the week. Think: Free scallion pancakes at Jahunger, 10% off Gong cha’s most popular drinks, new dishes at Mahaniyom, 20% off wagyu at Phat Thaiger, a combo meal at Rubato, and way, WAY more. 

🤤 What should you try? The top three spots on director Stephanie Chen’s list: Shanti, which is offering a special Indian street food menu with momos, pani puri, and falooda; Lê Madeline’s new set three-course menu, and Myers + Chang’s new menu with pork belly buns, dan dan noodles, and spicy Taiwanese fried chicken legs.

🎻🎼 ICYMI: The Boston Symphony Orchestra has been booked and busy lately. Yo-Yo Ma sold out Symphony Hall. Keith Lockhart is soon celebrating 30 years of Pops conducting. And now, the Decoding Shostakovich Festival is bringing raw emotion and Cold War-coded drama to the stage through May 7. It’s the perfect grand finale to a season that’s been anything but quiet. Catch the last performances, and while you’re at it, grab a subscription for next season — the best seats tend to go fast.

🌧️ It looks like Mother Nature confused April showers with May flowers. Because Boston’s forecast is taking a sharp turn for the wet and dreary just in time for the weekend (classic). Starting today, there’s rain in Boston’s forecast for the next six days. That said, before the deluge really starts Saturday evening, we have reason to hope that today and Saturday morning will see some dry stretches, with temps hitting the high 70s and even low 80s on Saturday. 

🚇 New weekend, new T shutdowns. On the docket: Red Line service between Braintree and JFK/UMass will be replaced by shuttles this weekend. Wanna avoid it? These Commuter Rail lines will be offering free service between Braintree, Quincy Center, JFK/UMass, and South Station. Meanwhile, Boston College station on the Green Line’s B branch will be closed from 9 p.m. tonight through May 4, so you'll need to walk the extra 350 feet to the intersection of Lake Street and Comm. Ave to board. Good luck!

🙋 Calling all former student government warriors! Applications for the 2025-2026 SPARK Boston Council just opened up. SPARK is the city’s volunteer leadership and civic engagement council made up of 20- to 35-year-old residents who advise the mayor on policies and programs affecting young residents. You’d be responsible for showing up to monthly meetings, leading city initiatives, and communicating with your fellow young folks. Sound good? You can apply here through June 30. 

⚾ Big Papi is riding the Wu train. David Ortiz, a.k.a. legendary Red Sox player Big Papi, hopped on an IG reel with Mayor Michelle Wu on Thursday to offer his endorsement in Boston’s mayoral race. “This is our f****** city, and this is our mayor,” he said. And while Ortiz didn’t give much context behind his pick (“vote for her, because we need more people like her … taking care of us”) and can’t technically vote for her (he now lives in Florida), it’s still a pretty big get for Wu if you ask us.

🥳 Start block party season with a bang. Tacos? Live music? Arts and activities? Check. Check. Check. All are on the agenda at Central Square’s VIVA Central block party on May 3. 

💃 Dance all night in the rain (indoors). This weekend’s weather is giving summer of 2023, so just close your eyes and enjoy the sunshine-y festival vibes at Boston Art Review’s epic dance party on May 3.

🐶 Do Derby Day … doggy style. Sure, you could go to this Kentucky Derby party on May 3. But these corgi and dachshund Derby Day races at Park-9 Dog Bar seem waaay more your speed. 

🏃 Scratch your post-marathon running itch. Want to run a marathon but can’t run a mile? We’re Not Really Runners run club is celebrating its first b-day May 3 with a low key group run + b-day party with free drinks and swag.

🤑 Trade your clothes for cash. You can do exactly that at Raspberry Beret’s spring cleaning buyout event this weekend, where you can get 20% to 30% back on your coolest clothes up front.

🖼️ Scope out Somerville’s best art. Nearly 400 (!) local artists will be displaying their work at over 100 sites across Somerville this weekend for the annual Somerville Open Studios event. Sniff out your route ahead of time here. 

🌸 It’s gonna be May(fair). Harvard Square’s Mayfair on May 4 knows how to celebrate spring. See: One-of-a-kind gifts and crafts, al fresco beer gardens, live music, even a free Pure Barre class!

🙌 SoWa is SO back. SoWa Open Market — one of the largest open-air farmer and artist markets in Boston — comes out of hibernation May 4. Expect all the usual suspects: loads of local and regional vendors, food trucks, and art (obv).

B-Side members get 50+ discounts and freebies at some of Boston’s trendiest spots, including 10% off takeout at Ciao Roma, a Roman-inspired Italian restaurant in Boston’s historic North End overlooking North Square on the Freedom Trail. Enjoy fresh, homemade pasta, classic meat and seafood dishes, and a curated Italian wine list with a full bar. Summertime features al fresco dining in the city’s best outdoor setting.

If your FYP is saturated with random teens’ college acceptance content … We have a timeline cleanser: A rejection cake. 

A group of Needham teens went viral for a TikTok somewhere between a “hear me out cake” and a college acceptance reaction video. The group takes turns happily adding colleges that rejected them to an unfrosted funfetti cake, from Harvard to Holy Cross to Vanderbilt and USC. 

The silly video got 6.2 million views, but its breakout star was a member of the group named Shiran, who added eight rejections to the cake, prompting comments like: “Shiran rejection cake … with guests.”

Thankfully, despite the rejections, everyone did get into college (including Shiran), and the group celebrated with an acceptance cake.

— Written by Gia Orsino and Emily Schario

🎓 Thanks for reading! All Gia and Emily have to say is thank GOD TikTok wasn’t around when they got their rejections. 

💜 Special shoutout to today’s sponsor, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, for supporting local journalism and bringing unforgettable musical experiences to our community.

👭 The results are in: 40% of B-Siders say they have a few work besties, but not a ton. One reader said: "I just got a new job so no friends yet but it kinda feels like my old work bestie died.... miss her <3.” Thoughts and prayers.

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